Dicho español · Spanish proverb
«Pueblo pequeño, infierno grande.»
Word for word
Small town, big hell.
What it really means
The closest English equivalent: Small town, big gossip.
Said about small communities where everyone knows everyone and gossip or social pressure feels suffocating. Common in Spain and Latin America.
Hear it in a sentence
Todos saben lo que haces aquí; pueblo pequeño, infierno grande.
Everyone knows what you do here; small town, big hell.
More Spanish sayings
- De grano en grano, llena la gallina el buche. — Little by little, one goes far.
- Piensa mal y acertarás. — Think the worst and you'll be right.
- Entre broma y broma, la verdad asoma. — Many a true word is spoken in jest.
- Más vale ser cabeza de ratón que cola de león. — Better to be first in a village than second in Rome.
- Al que le quede el saco, que se lo ponga. — If the shoe fits, wear it.
Why learn dichos?
Proverbs like this one are everywhere in spoken Spanish — dropped mid-conversation, usually just the first half, with the rest left for you to complete. Recognizing them is one of the fastest ways to sound less like a textbook and follow real speech. Every Lingocito edition signs off with the dicho del día, so you meet one a day next to news written at your level.